Essay on abstinence-only sex education is not effective

Introduction

The decaying morals of our society have prompted various organizations to come up with solutions that will save a generation. The most vulnerable are the children who acquire information from several media channels. The issue of sex has been the biggest topic of discussion. In an attempt to ensure that children are protected from the consequences of irresponsible sexual activities, sex education was introduced in schools. This was aimed at ensuring that the children obtain all information they needed top know about sex so that they do not obtain it from unauthorized sources. The principle of abstinence was ruled put with the claim that it has become impossible for teenage children to live without sex. However, we realize that sex education in schools is only legalizing sex among young children who feel they are well informed to start engaging in the act (Denny & Michael 17).

Background

Sex education has been highly misinterpreted in schools by both the pupils, teachers and parents. Introducing the subject in school was not meant to help children engage in illicit sex but rather to let them know what sex is and the risks that are associated with it. However, the way it has been presented in schools is making the issue worse than it was before. It has made children even more curious and even more promiscuous. It has even become difficult for parents and guardians to instill discipline in their children who feel they are mature enough to make decisions on sex. Sex among children has moved from being an illegal issue to something that is celebrated and even performed in the full watch of the parents. It has become common to see children visiting chemists to obtain family planning pills and condoms to engage in sex (Whitehead 5). They claim that they know how to use them and they want to have safe protected sex.
Sex education was designed to discourage rather than encourage children to engage in sex before they obtain the right age. This implies that teaching children about the dangers of sex would encourage them to abstain rather than to engage in sex. Children are supposed to be told that there is no safe sex for people of their age and that using any means of protection that is not abstinence will expose them to other risks. As it stands, we realize that either the teachers are not giving the pupils the right knowledge about sex or the pupils are decoding the message differently. Since we may not be able to draw a line between the two, it is clear that sex education is not delivering the right results as perceived.
Many factors may be blamed for the decaying morals among children. This includes exposure to sexual materials and lack of proper guidance on the same. Parents are not yet open enough to share the issues of sex with their children and hence not monitoring what they are being told in school. It has also been assumed that instilling the principle of abstinence in children is next to impossible and hence encouraging them to have protected sex. We have stooped too low in issues of our children’s health not considering what was passed on us by our parents. The fact that children are still growing and have other important issues to do and think about at their tender age makes it possible for them not to think about sex (Bleakley, Michael & Martin 10). Children should be made to understand that sex does not matter to them at their age and that they will get to know the details at the right time.
One grave mistake that sex does to children is that it occupies their mind so much that they do not concentrate on other important issues. There is the addictive nature of sex where a person will not only want to hear about it but also practically explore it. The level at which a person desires such exposure depends on the stage. This may have nothing to do with their age but what they already know (Haffner 9). For instance, if we start talking to a seven-year-old child about sex, by the time they are twelve, they will be having so much theory that they will now want the practical part. It will be quite difficult to change the mind of such a child, as by such a time, they are access to all materials that explain more about the subject. It is sad that teachers are giving children sexual information they do not need and hence corrupting their innocent mind.
It is important to understand that a child will not comment about something they have not seen. This therefore means that before a child mentions anything about sex, they must have seen a scene. This does not mean that they already know but are just curious to know more about what it is. It is now that a parent should answer the question accordingly without having to expose a lot. A child who has been answered appropriately may never bother about the topic until when they are exposed to a similar scene again. This is the same principle that has to be applied in schools. It is possible to answer a child about a question on sex without encouraging them to engage in the act. It should also be remembered that children grow at a different rate depending on the level of exposure. Assuming that all twelve aged children are mature, enough to know about contraceptives is wrong.

Conclusion

Realizing that sex education is promoting irresponsible sexual behavior than minimizing it, it is a high time that such a subject be abolished in schools. Teachers should however have a different approach towards the issue where they should discourage children from engaging in sex. The fact is, there is no benefit for children when they engage in sex. This implies that the topic of sex among children has only the negative impacts. This should be emphasized whenever such an issue crops up among them. Parents and teachers should closely monitor their children and minimize any form of sexual exposure among them. The more we preach about abstinence, the deeper it will sink among our children. This will ensure that they concentrate on other issues of development such as education and making meaningful relationship (Toups & William 12). It will be bad when a child as young as ten years old stops looking at a child of their opposite gender as their friend and instead consider them a potential lover. This will turn our schools into sexual dens rather than learning institutions. Sex education in school has even seen teachers abusing their students in the name of having protected sex with them.

Works cited

Bleakley, Amy, Michael Hennessy, and Martin Fishbein. ” Public opinion on sex education in US schools.” Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine 160. 11 (2006): 1151.
Denny, George, and Michael Young. ” An Evaluation of an Abstinence‐Only Sex Education Curriculum: An 18‐Month Follow‐up.” Journal of School Health 76. 8 (2006): 414-422.
Haffner, Debra W. ” What’s wrong with abstinence-only sexuality education programs?.” SIECUS report 25. 4 (1997): 9.
Toups, Melanie L., and William R. Holmes. ” Effectiveness of Abstinence‐Based Sex Education Curricula: A Review.” Counseling and Values 46. 3 (2002): 237-240.
Whitehead, Barbara Dafoe. ” The failure of sex education.” The Atlantic Monthly 274. 4 (1994): 55-80.